Tag: bear

Bear napping at a desert spring

The monsoon rain this year was hit or miss and so any water source, no matter how small, benefited the animals. Not just for drinking, but for attracting prey species including insects and small mammals. These water sources also offered an opportunity to cool off from the intense desert heat. This bear visited the spring several times over a week, drinking his fill of water and then laying in the water to nap and cool off.

Little bear antics

Bears are still out and fattening up in the Sky Island mountain ranges in Arizona. This sow and her cub visited the bear wallow for a swim several times over the last couple of weeks. It won’t be long before they find their cave and curl up for the winter.

Sow and Cub

As you’ll see, the mamma bear has an injured leg. It’s no telling what happened, but either way, she must have been in pain. Her cub even looks troubled about it. This was captured a few weeks ago, and since then, none of the five cameras in that canyon saw here again. I’m hoping she moved further up the mountains to cooler temps, water, and more food.

Sleepy bear

This tiny waterhole in the Sonoran Desert is generally really popular with birds and small mammals. Recently, though, a bear has decided it’s a great place to rest and relax. He spent about an hour there, just hanging out. The spines in his muzzle are from prickly pear cactus and, based on the nearby bear scat, he was eating the cactus fruits.

Black bear nap time

In the Sonoran Desert, any water is precious. This little seep provides water for many desert critters, including this sleepy male black bear. I suspect he was down amongst the saguaro cacti to feed on their many ripe red fruits that have fallen to the ground.

Little Bear cools off

It’s been a pretty dry monsoon season so far here in the Sonoran Desert. The main waterholes used by local wildlife in my area are drying up due to sparse rains. The low water level at what we’ve been calling Little Bear Pool didn’t stop this black bear from taking a soak to cool down. Thankfully, more rain is forecasted for this week.